Interesting Policy Reads: Maine's New Privacy Law, Possible SCOTUS Activity on Web Accessibility, and a Multinational AI Partnership

With our "Interesting Reads" blog posts, the EDUCAUSE Policy Office highlights recent articles on federal policy issues and developments that are directly relevant to members or provide insights on higher education policy in general.

• Changing Spaces, Inside Higher Ed, August 14, 2019. (For-profit universities are rethinking ways on how best to use campus locations to supplement their online curricula as their previous uses for in-person classes are becoming obsolete.)
• Maine's New Privacy Law Means Well, but Goes Wrong, The Hill, August 13, 2019. (Maine's new privacy law requires customers to opt in rather than opt out of personal data selling, distribution, and access by third parties, but it may pose some issues for consumers themselves as some of this data is necessary for everyday digital operations.)
• A University's Online MBA Is Less Expensive—and Purposely Different, Inside Higher Ed, August 14, 2019. (Boston University's online MBA program has been purposefully created and advertised as different than its on-campus version, challenging the traditional online MBA programs that other universities offer.)
• The Internet's Accessibility Reckoning, Axios, August 20, 2019. (The Supreme Court could decide to hear a case this year on website accessibility.)
• Wireless Carrier Throttling of Online Video Is Pervasive, Bloomberg, August 19, 2019. (New research suggests that US wireless carriers may be slowing video traffic on their networks more often than needed, raising questions on whether all internet traffic is treated equally.)
• Handshake for All, Inside Higher Ed, August 21, 2019. (Handshake's career-services platform is now open and free to use for any student with a .edu email address, a move that is changing the way that colleges and universities are using traditional career services.)
• NIST Delays Cyber Standards for Pentagon Contractors Pending OMB Review, Inside Defense, August 16, 2019. (The National Institute of Standards and Technology is delaying the release of cybersecurity standards used by Defense Department contractors until the Office of Management and Budget reviews related privacy and security protection standards for all government data.)
• Online Education Start-Up, Backed by Research University Credit, Inside Higher Ed, August 21, 2019. (Outlier aims to provide high-quality online courses, low prices, and the opportunity to use credits from these courses using the backing of the University of Pittsburgh in hopes of helping community college students and others who are looking to transfer into selective universities.)
• New Research Alliance Cements Split on AI Ethics, Inside Higher Ed, August 23, 2019. (Germany, France, and Japan are joining together to fund AI research aimed at respecting human privacy and transparency through a balance between government, industry, and the individual.)

For more information about policy issues impacting higher education IT, please visit the EDUCAUSE Review Policy Spotlight blog as well as the EDUCAUSE Policy page.

Kathryn Branson is an Associate with Ulman Public Policy.